The present invention relates generally to agricultural machines having processing apparatus for harvesting standing crops, and, more particularly to a corn threshing header configured to be non-row sensitive.
Known production chopping corn headers waste energy in the process of removing the ear from the stalk, transferring the ear to the feeder house, and in the row-aligned cutting of the stalk. Additionally, there are structures on the corn header that function only under certain crop conditions and that could be eliminated in an altered threshing process.
The function of row dividers and hoods is only necessary in instances of damage to the corn stalk. When the corn is uniformly planted in evenly-spaced straight rows and remains standing (undamaged) and the automatic feed system is properly functioning, the row dividers serve no purpose. Further, the row dividers forward position on the header usually means they are among the first components damaged if the header is run aground.
Hoods cover the header mechanism to minimize build-up of crop and crop debris generated during the ear-stripping process that could reduce mechanical function. The hoods further prevent loss of kernels dislodged the ears impact the deck plates as stalk are drawn into the header.
Gathering chains move ears from the position at which they are stripped from the stalk to an auger. Gathering chains comprise a specialized chain having paddles mounted thereon, drive and idler sprockets, a tensioning apparatus, and a drive apparatus typically including a shaft and a variable-speed hydraulic driver. Two such gathering chains are required for each corn row fed into the header. The result is a complex and inefficient system.
Stalk rolls engage the stalks and pull them downward so that the ears impact a deck plate and are detached from the stalk. The rolls each comprise a rotating helical member driven by a shaft with knives attached thereto, and a drive apparatus to rotationally drive the rolls. Each row requires a pair of stalk rolls. As with the gathering chains, the result is an overly complex and inefficient system to perform such a limited function.
A cross auger laterally moves the stripped ears from each row toward the center of the header. The configuration of the auger is such that kernels dislodged from the ear during the stripping operation may not be engaged and thus conveyed to the center of the header where they can be gathered by the harvesting machine. This allows stray kernels to gather in outboard recesses of the header resulting in both loss of grain and increased debris accumulation in the header.
A corn harvesting header that could refine or eliminate some or all of these inefficient apparatus from the header would be of great benefit. Further, a header capable of harvesting corn planted in a random arrangement in a field instead of uniformly spaced-apart rows could improve overall crop production efficiency by allowing greater crop density and less intensive planting requirements.